Zoo going green-er

[cincygreg]

A lot of this stuff sounds pretty

A NEW, Green Way into the Cincinnati Zoo
Opening May 16, the Historic Vine Street Village
will Make Getting into the Zoo Easier Than Ever!

CINCINNATI ? For the first time in decades, visitors to the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden will enter the
Zoo through the historical 1875 entrance on Vine Street. During the late 1970?s, the entry was moved to the
northern edge of the Zoo to accommodate vehicular traffic and has remained there ever since. In an effort to
consolidate parking and re-establish Vine Street as the Zoo?s ?front door?, the entry will return to its original
location on Saturday, May 16! The Historic Vine Street Village, a $19.6 million, three-year project, will be
situated between the Elephant Reserve (which was renovated as part of Phase 1 of the project and completed in
July 2008) and the Reptile House, two of the most historic structures on the grounds. Inspired by the Zoo?s
original architect, James McLaughlin, Historic Vine Street Village structures will be a fun and modern
interpretation of a neo-Victorian style, designed by Cornette-Violetta Architects and built by HGC
Construction.
?Our goal is to inspire our visitors with wildlife every day of the year,? said Thane Maynard, Executive
Director of the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden. ?The opening of this entrance puts the focus on the entire
Zoo experience by introducing families to more animals, more interactive opportunities and more fun than ever
before. As the cornerstone of the new entrance, the Elephant Reserve offers an incredible start to every Zoo
visit with 25 tons of pachyderms.?
The Historic Vine Street Village will be a comfortable, friendly, and exciting place where visitors can
relax, shop, eat and enjoy their Zoo visit. In addition, this will be the new location for ticketing, guest relations,
memberships and retail shops (which will open in November 2009). The opening of the Village brings with it a
new green initiative for the entire park. The Zoo plans to become a national model for sustainable design and
renewable energy. The Zoo?s aim is to protect wildlife while also encouraging visitors to Go Green in their
own homes.
The Historic Vine Street Village has many exciting features including more parking, a pedestrian bridge,
self-ticketing kiosks, new green restrooms, and a Natural Selections Caf?. An ?express entrance? grants
members and visitors who purchased tickets online immediate entry, without having to wait in line. Historic
Vine Street Village also helps to re-establish the ?Route 1? METRO line, allowing visitors to save the
environment by using the bus when traveling to the Zoo. This new METRO line will be near the corner of
Shields and Vine Streets and will complement the design of the Zoo?s new entry Vine Street Village. Special
parking will also be reserved for those who travel together in a car pool or who use alternative transportation
(i.e. bikes). The Zoo?s parking facilities will also be shared with other local institutions to reduce the amount of
hard surfaces for parking within the city.
Convenient parking leads Zoo visitors safely over Vine Street by sky-bridge into a blooming entrance.
The new buildings in the Vine Street Village will help to make the Cincinnati Zoo the second LEED Platinum
certified Zoo in the country. The LEED Green Building Rating System emphasizes state of the art strategies for
sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency materials selection, and indoor environmental
quality. Some of the highlights include:
The buildings in the Historic Vine Street Village will be 60% more energy-efficient than standard
buildings thanks to:
 10 kW of solar panels that reduce the demand for coal-fired power by 15%
 Geothermal heat pumps that meet all of the heating and cooling demands
 Spray foam insulation that reduces heating and cooling demands
 A solar water heating system that reduces coal-fired power to supply the restrooms
 Renewable energy credits that make the Membership and Ticketing building a Net-Zero carbon
usage facility
The Historic Vine Street Village will manage rainwater to eliminate runoff through the use of:
 Over 30,000 square feet of pervious pavers and an extra thick layer of porous gravel underneath
that stores hundreds of thousands of gallons of rain water
 A rainwater harvesting tank that collects water from the roofs
 The existing elephant moat as an overflow mechanism to handle excess rainwater
Reduce, reuse and recycle are important connects of the Historic Vine Street Village design as:
 30% of the building materials were recycled
 Over 60% of the building materials were purchased locally, reducing the fuel costs of shipping
 More than 80% of the wood used is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council as sustainably
harvested
 About 80% of construction waste was sent to recycling centers for reuse
 Waterless urinals and highly water-efficient toilets and faucets use 50% less water than standard
facilities
 Captured rainwater is used to irrigate landscape
In addition to other green building efforts, the Zoo is finding other ways to reinforce their
environmental initiative. Prominently marked recycling cans will be placed around the park to highlight the
importance of recycling and only green cleaning products will be used by the housekeeping staff. Plants on the
property will also be chosen according to how well they thrive in this area. In turn, this will reduce the risk of
introducing a species that may cause harm to other plants or animals.
Ever since the early efforts of Adolf Strauch and Albert Erkenbrecher there has been an underlying
theme of the Cincinnati Zoo as a botanical garden throughout its long history. To continue in these efforts the
Historic Vine Street Village landscape was designed with two underlying themes in mind; the Zoo as an
experimental garden and the Zoo as a park-like setting. These two themes were predominant when the Zoo first
opened and they continue to be the foundation for the Zoo?s horticulture staff today. New varieties of plants
will be introduced to this region for the very first time as part of this experimental garden and the emphasis on
color and shade will truly make the new entrance a place where people can enjoy this relaxing park-like setting.
Historic Vine Street Village was made possible through a combination of generous private and public
funding. Public funding included gifts from the Federal Transit Authority and the Ohio Cultural Facilities
Commission. Private funding included a variety of individuals, corporations and foundations, including the
Macy?s Fund, The Greater Cincinnati Foundation and Duke Energy.
The Zoo?s strong commitment to a global conservation effort starts at their front door! Learn more about
how you can ?Go Green? and more by visiting the Historic Vine Street Village at the Cincinnati Zoo.
Experience the wonders of the Zoo?s new energy efficient technology, while also enjoying the animals and
sights that we all know and love. For more information on this project, visit Welcome to the Cincinnati Zoo.

One more reason to give the zoo a big

[gae]

We DON'T care. Zoos are EVIL.
Although, considering the 'hood, maybe more cages are needed.

[cincygreg]

Nah, the zoo rules!